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Outdoor Spaces: Decks vs Patios

 In Blog, New Construction, Outdoor Living, Renovations

When you build a new home, there is more to consider than floor plans, what materials to use, and the interior design. If you enjoy spending time outdoors, have pets, host parties, or want a playground for your kids, you’ll need to think about the area surrounding your home as well. Commonly, home buyers desire to have a nice, cool outdoor extension of their home in the form of a patio or deck. When you build your dream home, it makes sense to build the outdoor living area along with it, so you’ll need to know the differences between patios and decks, the different features of each, and which would work well for you and your home before making a decision.

What’s the difference?

Decks and patios are two different outdoor extensions of your home. A deck is an elevated outdoor living space attached to the back of your home. More commonly built with wood, decks can be made of a variety of different materials depending on your style and budget! Decks are great for uneven terrain and can be a platform for beautiful views and to enjoy looking over your backyard. Decks may require a permit to build and also may need to have a railing around the perimeter for safety. Decks typically have better ROI (return on investment) than our other outdoor living area, patios.

Patios can be attached or separate from the home. They sit on top of the ground and can be made from a variety of materials. Patios are naturally suitable for flat terrain, but with the proper landscaping or when you build a new construction, building a patio in conjunction with your new home is much easier than building later (on uneven terrain). Patios embrace the surrounding landscape and are less expensive than building a deck.

Features of Decks and Patios

The view, return on investment (ROI), and customization of decks are a few of its best features. Of course, if you build a home on a beautiful piece of land or simply enjoy being above the ground the elevated nature of a deck can be raised or lowered according to your specification. Decks are perfect for yards with a note worthy view and homeowners who may want to add some color to their outdoor space.

Patios are known to be less expensive, more private, easy to maintain, and have a long lifespan (about 25 years). However, they are not suited for uneven terrain and can be more prone to cracks, since common materials are concrete, tile, stone, and the like. Patios are typically built with more “permanent” materials such as concrete and tile. Their longevity will bring family memories for years to come. You can incorporate so much of your landscape with a patio and really achieve the “down to earth” feel, if that is your style.

In the end, choosing between a deck or patio can be either easy or difficult. It depends on the amount of time, money, and effort you are willing to put into the project. If your property is flat, you could easily have either deck or patio! However, for homeowners with a sloped landscape it is not as simple. To build a patio on a sloped landscape, you will need to level the land, but building a deck would be much less expensive. If you want a more natural, wooden, and possibly colorful outdoor living space, the deck is certainly for you (especially if you have an art worthy view!). Patios marry the interior to the exterior; the material to the natural. Patios are typically enjoyed longer and do not have as small a weight restriction for furniture and appliances like decks do. Consider the outdoor living space before building your dream home and let your contractor (+ Designer with L&M) what kind of outdoor living space you desire and start planning together!

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